In Deeper Experiences, James Lawson explores the spiritual lives of the most famous Christians of all ages. He begins with a brief sketch of Old Testament saints, moves to the New Testament & than touches on the post-apostolic era before centering on specific characters from Savonarola (1452-1498) to the present (1911). What Lawson found was that no matter how different the individuals were or what the various nuances of their beliefs were they all had one thing in common—the baptism, filling or gift of the Holy Spirit. Now, they called this baptism different things—entire sanctification, perfect love, holiness (Methodist); full assurance of faith, life of faith (Presbyterian); entire consecration (Congregationalist & Baptist); living in the spirit, over-coming power (Quaker); death to self-life, pure love (Catholic & Greek). (pg. 
But the effect of being filled with power from on high is the same throughout. These deeper experiences went beyond ‘behold the lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world’ to ‘he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit & fire.’ Continue Reading…
Book Review: Deeper Experiences of Famous Christians
10 Takeaways from Onward by Howard Schultz, founder & ceo of Starbucks
1.“Entrepreneurs must love what they do to such a degree that doing it is worth sacrifice and, at times, pain. But doing anything else we think, would be unimaginable.” Pg. 9
2.The Starbucks Mission: To inspire & nurture the human spirit one person, one cup & one neighborhood at a time. “Starbucks mission & very real social contribution: human connection.” Pg. 159
3.On closing 600 stores…
“As I stared at the list of 600, a lesson resonated: Success is not sustainable if it’s defined by how big you become. Large numbers that once captivated me—40,000 stores!—are not what matter. The only number that matters is “one.” One cup. One customer. One partner. One experience at a time.” Pg. 156
4.From Daniel Henninberg’s Wall Street Journal article: What is going here? It can’t be about the coffee.
“Would people go this berserk if the local Dunkin’ Donuts closed?”
“A friend said that the Starbucks stores bitter-enders reminded her of the protests against the closing of the neighborhood Catholic churches. True. The stores are like secular chapels. No sign on the wall syas you must be quiet, polite or contemplative, but people are. Ritual abounds.” Pg. 163
5.On the Leadership Conference of 10,000 partners held in Now Orleans… Continue Reading…
Life Together by Dietrich Bonhoeffer
In his Life Together, Dietrich Bonhoeffer shows why participation in Christian community is essential for every true follower of Christ. As Christians, the brotherhood is something we must participate in. It is a reality whether we accept it or not. It does not depend on our ideal or imagination of it. In fact, for Bonhoeffer, the quicker a person’s image of what they think Christian community should be is shattered the better. We simply enter Christian community not as ‘demanders’ or lords but as thankful recipients. Taken from Life Together below are…
6 Essential Practices of Christian Communities &/or Families:
- Every morning the day begins with praise to God, hearing of the word & common prayer.
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- Praise: Our 1st thoughts & words of the day belong to God. Rise early for the love of God. Be sure to use the Psalms every morning. ‘The Psalter is the great school of prayer.’ (pg. 47) Continue Reading…
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